CHAPTER 134
The very day Guy and the others returned to Outpost No. 8, Uchiha Feiquan immediately ordered the camp's defenses to be strengthened.
The following day, an emergency warning from Konoha's main headquarters also arrived.
Iwagakure might launch a large-scale operation in the near future.
All frontline outposts were ordered to raise their level of vigilance.
No one dared to be careless.
Every shinobi remained on constant alert.
Patrol routes were increased.
Guard rotations became more frequent.
The number of sentries around the camp also doubled.
However, more than a month passed.
Apart from occasional reconnaissance teams and several small-scale skirmishes launched by Iwagakure, there was still no sign of a full-scale offensive.
Although battles continued from time to time, neither their intensity nor their frequency differed much from before.
As the peaceful days stretched on...
The tense nerves of many shinobi gradually began to relax.
But Guy became increasingly vigilant.
He knew very well...
The great upheaval that would eventually awaken Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan was destined to happen.
Combining the unusually prolonged calm with the warning sent from headquarters...
He judged that the decisive battle was probably very close.
Guy first found Ebisu and Genma.
"The atmosphere on the battlefield hasn't felt right lately."
"I have a bad feeling."
"I think something major is about to happen."
"You two must stay alert at all times."
"From tonight onward, we'll take turns standing watch."
Hearing Guy's warning, both Ebisu and Genma became serious.
Without hesitation, they nodded firmly.
Others might question Guy's battlefield instincts...
But they trusted him without reservation.
Time after time...
Countless battles stained with blood had already proven...
Guy's intuition was frighteningly accurate.
Afterward, Guy sought out Uchiha Shisui.
He didn't directly tell him that Uchiha Feiquan might die in battle.
Nor did he mention that Outpost No. 8 would soon face a catastrophe.
Instead, he recounted everything that had happened before the Battle of Mount Kikyo.
"Shisui."
"The current situation reminds me too much of what happened before Mount Kikyo."
Guy's expression was incomparably serious.
"Before Sunagakure launched its surprise attack..."
"The entire camp had also remained peaceful for a long time."
"Troops were even being redeployed."
"Everyone believed the enemy had already withdrawn."
"They relaxed their guard."
"And then..."
His voice became heavy.
"Out of fifteen hundred Konoha shinobi..."
"Fewer than three hundred survived."
"The atmosphere on this front..."
"Feels almost identical."
Shisui's expression immediately became solemn.
Although he hadn't personally participated in the Battle of Mount Kikyo...
The tragedy had already spread throughout Konoha.
He also knew Guy's personality very well.
Guy never exaggerated.
Nor did he make reckless judgments.
More importantly...
He had personally experienced the entire Battle of Mount Kikyo.
From the long period of calm...
To the devastating surprise attack.
This wasn't fear.
It was the experience of someone who had survived hell itself.
"I understand."
Shisui nodded seriously.
"I'll report this to Father immediately."
Hearing those words, Guy quietly let out a sigh of relief.
Although Uchiha Feiquan had never shown much concern toward Guy's team...
He trusted Shisui greatly.
Having Shisui relay the warning was far more effective than Guy reporting it personally.
That very day...
Shisui recounted everything about Mount Kikyo to his father.
Although Uchiha Feiquan didn't completely agree with Guy's conclusion that another Mount Kikyo tragedy was about to occur...
Out of caution...
He once again reinforced his previous orders.
The camp was to remain at maximum alert.
No one was permitted to lower their guard.
Days quietly slipped by.
On the surface...
Everything remained calm.
Yet beneath that calm...
Invisible undercurrents surged.
Finally...
Half a month later...
Late one night...
Whoosh!
A brilliant crimson signal flare suddenly exploded above Outpost No. 7, the nearest outpost to theirs.
Its dazzling light instantly tore through the darkness.
Immediately afterward...
As though triggering a chain reaction...
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Signal flares erupted one after another from every direction.
Their blood-red light illuminated nearly the entire night sky.
Enemy attack!
Inside Outpost No. 8...
The shrill alarm whistle instantly echoed through the camp.
"Enemy attack!"
"Everyone assemble immediately!"
Uchiha Feiquan's commanding shout resounded throughout the outpost.
Every Uchiha shinobi rushed out of their tents at once.
They quickly equipped their weapons.
Following the emergency response plan...
Some prepared to reinforce nearby outposts.
Others immediately assumed defensive positions.
However...
Before they could fully mobilize...
"Earth Release: Earth Flow River!"
"Earth Release: Rock Pillar Spears!"
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
A barrage of Earth Release ninjutsu suddenly erupted from the darkness outside the camp.
The attacks blanketed the entrance...
The assembly grounds...
And nearly every major approach into the camp.
"Scatter!"
The Uchiha reacted with astonishing speed.
Some used the Body Flicker Technique to evade.
Others countered with Fire Release and shurikenjutsu.
Dust exploded everywhere.
Despite the sudden ambush...
The camp still completed its defensive formation under the command of Uchiha Feiquan and the various squad leaders.
Although panic briefly spread...
Fortunately...
No casualties were suffered.
At almost the same moment...
Outpost No. 8 also fired its own emergency signal flare into the sky.
Yet...
Before its light had fully bloomed...
Large numbers of enemy figures emerged simultaneously from both the front and rear of the camp.
Over twenty shinobi blocked the front.
Another twenty or more sealed off the rear.
Altogether...
Nearly fifty Iwagakure elite shinobi had completely surrounded Outpost No. 8.
Judging from their Chakra...
Even the weakest among them possessed Chunin-level strength.
Among them...
At least five radiated Chakra comparable to Jonin.
An elite assault force from Iwagakure.
However...
That wasn't what shocked everyone the most.
Standing at the head of the rear assault force...
Was a burly middle-aged man.
He possessed blazing red hair that stood upright like flames.
A thick crimson beard framed his face.
He wore Iwagakure's purple combat armor.
An Iwagakure forehead protector rested upon his brow.
Most terrifying of all...
Was the scorching heat radiating from his body.
The violent Chakra constantly leaking from him made the surrounding air feel as though it were burning.
The moment many experienced Uchiha shinobi recognized that unmistakable appearance...
Their expressions changed dramatically.
"That appearance..."
"Could it really be..."
"Him?!"
"But..."
"Why would he appear here?!"
Even Uchiha Feiquan's face instantly became extremely grim.
He had recognized the man immediately.
The newcomer...
Was one of Iwagakure's greatest strategic weapons.
The master of Lava Release.
The jinchuriki of the Four-Tails...
Roshi.
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